1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dispenser apparatus and a method for dispensing a product therefrom. More particularly, this invention relates to an apparatus wherein a dispensing tube is squeezed to dispense product from a container in the dispenser.
2. Description of the Related Art
Dispenser units are common in everyday life and dispense many different types of products. The dispensed products may range from liquid to solid substances, and the dispensers may be found in a variety of different environments. The products may include antimicrobial soap, antibacterial soap, lotion, and medicinal products. One typical use for a dispenser unit is to supply hand soap to a user of a restroom.
It is also well known that maintaining a high level of employee hygiene is critical in the food service industry and healthcare professions, where the spread of bacteria and viruses can ultimately endanger a person""s health. Numerous inventions such as touch-free, automatic soap dispensers, faucets and hand dryers attempt to address the problem of workplace hygiene by making it easier for employees to wash their hands without touching surfaces that could contribute to contamination.
Some existing manual dispensers utilize a hand-operated lever to compress a tube and discharge a unit of soap or the like. Aside from the obvious hygiene concerns with such a dispenser, the compression of the tube results in some amount of product being forced back into a container where it was first stored, instead of into a user""s hand. This results in the user operating the lever for more product, or designing the tube to be longer to hold more product, or performing other methods to deliver more product to the user per lever operation.
Many conventional xe2x80x9ctouch-freexe2x80x9d dispensers work on the same general principles as the manual dispensers, that is, squeezing a tube to dispense product, but utilize an infrared unit that signals the dispenser automatically to discharge a unit of product when a user triggers an infrared sensor with his hand. While these dispensers may reduce the possibility of transmitting germs through direct user contact, they nevertheless still suffer from the same problem of forcing some of the product back into the container when the tube is compressed, ultimately resulting in product waste. In addition, some of the product dispensed is actually drawn back into the tube as the dispenser readies itself for the next discharge cycle. This increases the possibility of contaminating the product in the tube and, by extension, the container storing the product. Furthermore, such dispensers typically have tight operating tolerances and can only accommodate containers and tubes of a specific size rather than a range of sizes.
It is an object of the current invention to solve the problems discussed above relating to dispensers.
Specifically, it is an object of the current invention to provide a means for preventing the product from being pushed back into the container when the dispensing tube is squeezed during a discharge cycle.
In addition, it is an object of the current invention to provide a means for preventing the dispensed product from being drawn back into the dispensing tube once it has been discharged.
It is also an object of the current invention to allow for universal adaptability to different sizes and types of containers by providing removable and interchangeable components, such as dispensing tubes and back plates.
One embodiment of the present invention relates to a dispenser apparatus including: a housing; a container inserted into the housing for storing a product; a dispensing tube connected to the container to direct flow of the product from the container and having an open end; a motor mounted in the housing; a cam rotatably driven by the motor; a back plate attached to the housing; a crank with a proximate end mounted on the cam; and a press-plate connected to a distal end of the crank for pressing the dispensing tube against the back plate when the cam rotates a predetermined distance to discharge the product through the open end of the dispensing tube. The apparatus further comprises a sensing unit for triggering the dispenser apparatus to discharge a unit of the product when a user places an object within a predetermined proximity to the sensing unit, wherein a user-selectable number of units of the product are discharged when a user places an object within a predetermined proximity to the sensing unit. One unit of the product is discharged when the cam rotates one complete cycle. The container may be one of a disposable container and a refillable container. The apparatus can further include an exit port located on the container from which the product is discharged, wherein the dispensing tube is removably attached to the exit port of the container. The apparatus typically includes a check valve located in the open end of the dispensing tube to permit unidirectional dispensing of the product from the container. The motor has a rotatable output shaft with a gear mounted thereon that engages a final gear mounted on the cam through at least one gear. The apparatus also includes a pinch-off unit juxtaposed in physical contact against the cam for pressing the dispensing tube against the back plate when the cam rotates a predetermined distance, wherein the pinch-off unit includes a roller that presses the dispensing tube against the back plate to prevent the product from returning to the container until the press plate fully discharges the product through the open end of the dispensing tube. The press-plate is located between the pinch-off unit and the open end of the dispensing tube and presses the dispensing tube against the back plate progressively from the area closest to the pinch-off unit to the open end of the dispensing tube. The back plate is removably attached to the housing, the back plate may be replaced with another back plate to accommodate another dispensing tube having different dimensions than the dispensing tube. The back plate contains a gap for inserting one or more adjustment plates to change the flexibility of the back plate. The dispenser apparatus can include a check valve in another end of the dispensing tube furthest from the open end to prevent the product from returning to the container while the press plate fully discharges the product through the open end of the dispensing tube.
Another embodiment of the present invention relates to a dispensing method having the steps of. storing a product in a container; directing a flow of the product from the container through a dispensing tube to an open end thereof; rotating a cam using a motor; extending a press plate attached to the cam through a crank; pressing the dispensing tube against a back plate using the press plate when the cam rotates a predetermined distance; and discharging the product through the open end of the dispensing tube. The rotating step is triggered when a user places an object within a predetermined proximity to a sensing unit, wherein the rotating step is performed a predetermined number of times by pre-selecting a number of units of the product to be discharged when a user places an object within a predetermined proximity to the sensing unit. The discharging step includes discharging one unit of the product when the cam rotates one complete cycle. The storing step includes storing the product in one of a disposable container and a refillable container. The directing step includes directing the flow of the product from an exit port located on the container through the dispensing tube to the open end thereof, wherein the directing step includes removably attaching the dispensing tube to the exit port of the container. The method further involves permitting unidirectional dispensing of the product from the container using a check valve located in the open end of the dispensing tube. The rotating step includes rotating a rotatable output shaft of the motor with a gear mounted thereon that engages a final gear mounted on the cam through at least one gear. The method teaches pinching the dispensing tube against the back plate when the cam rotates a predetermined distance using a pinch-off unit juxtaposed in physical contact against the cam, wherein the pinching step includes pressing the dispensing tube against the back plate using a roller attached to the pinch-off unit to prevent the product from returning to the container until the press plate fully discharges the product through the open end of the dispensing tube. The pressing step includes pressing the dispensing tube against the back plate progressively from the area closest to the pinch-off unit to the open end of the dispensing tube such that the press-plate is located between the pinchoff unit and the open end of the dispensing tube. The method typically includes replacing the back plate with another back plate to accommodate another dispensing tube having different dimensions than the dispensing tube, and inserting one or more adjustment plates in a gap in the back plate contains to change the flexibility of the back plate. The method also involves preventing the product from returning to the container while the press plate fully discharges the product through the open end of the dispensing tube using a check valve in another end of the dispensing tube furthest from the open end.